The time will be changing again. I think on Sunday but not sure. Anyhow this is our 10th Homeschool Memoirs so this week it’s going to be about 10 timely facts about you! Write 10 interesting, crazy, weird, fun facts about you! Include facts about you as a woman, a wife, a mommy, a homeschooler, a homekeeper, a taxi-driver, a cook, etc . I only put 10 facts because I didn’t want to overwhelm you, but you’re welcome to do more!
Ok, let me see.......
10 facts about me as a woman:
I have brown hair
I never really felt comfortable being called anything but a girl until recently- now I’m a woman, I guessJ
I have a lion personality type, or if you read The People Code- red with a bit of yellow.
I don’t like skirts unless they are really long.
I can use power tools
I prefer function to frilliness
I don’t like knick knacks
I love candles
I wanted to be a scientist when I grew up.
I dislike doing dishes and I am praying for a dishwasher.
As a Wife
I got married at 19.
God gave me a vision of marrying my husband
I spent my 21st birthday pregnant, and not drinking
I think submission is mis-interpreted by most people.
I like working on things with my husband.
I wish I got to spend more time with my husband just having fun
I don’t keep secrets from my husband
I was almost a widow- twice.
I married the 3rd person I was engaged to.
My husband can calm me or frustrate me like no one else on earth.
As a Mother
My first child did not talk until she was 3.
I breastfed all of my kids at least partially and belive it is the best.
I have 3 children with special needs
My second daughter died in 2000, at the age of 9 months
Two of my babies were due on leap day.
Sometimes I just need QUIET and don’t get it.
I feel like my daughter is really my friend now that she is 14! That’s so COOL!
I have 2 boys who are as different as night and day.
I have been home schooling for 6 years now
I like being able to watch my kids grow.
As a homeschooler:
I love unit studies and so do the kids
I don’t believe in paying a lot for curriculum
I can find almost anything for free or really cheap
I tend to overplan
My big kids went to public school for a few years
I like science and now that I am an adult, I enjoy history
We use movies as much as possible in school- almost every day (Netflix)
I have a great deal of support in my family
I wish I had done this from the very beginning
The only child I have taught to read is Rowan
Written by Miss Jocelyn on October 15, 2008 – 2:27 pm -
Each family has something special about them… we’re all unique in that way! LOL! I know my family is like no one you’ll ever meet and I’m sure you all can say the same thing! Sometimes God has a sense of humour when creating families, but he has a plan in everything. Isn’t comforting to know we were designed with purpose?
THEME
This week’s theme is about your family. Don’t worry. I’m not going to make you write a long essay about all the great things your family does. Just something little diddy that I know everyone will have fun with!
Watch the youtube video below and then take this song and add your own words, about your family. The end of the first three lines should rhyme. Can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Ok, so Here is our little ditty:0)
The Thornton Family
We have a snake named Esther
And Rowan likes to pester
Dad's bald like Uncle Fester,
The Thornton Family
We have a girl called Trinna
Who enjoys cooking dinna
She really is a winna
The Thornton Family
Our Momma is the teacher
She's always finding creatures
We love to hear the preacher,
The Thornton Family
cool
Funschool
Not fools
Harley's always reading
We go to 4 H meetings
There's no assigned seating,
The Thornton Family
We don't do EVIL-ution
That's the wrong solution,
It's science-pollution
The Thornton Family
We care about creation,
And truth in every nation
We're glad our God is patient,
The Thornton Family
This week's theme is about our favorite snack foods. I thought I would write down what everyone likes.....
Trinity's favorite snacks include:
1. Chex Mix
2. Handi Snacks cheese and bread sticks
3.garlic bread ( that she makes for all of us)
4 s'mores
5 Popcorn home made with parmesan cheese, butter and adobo
Pop 1 cup of popcorn kernels in an air popper.
placed popped corn into a brown double paper bag
( this needs 2 sets of hands)
quickly, white it is still hot, pour desired amount of melted butter into the bag, while the other person shakes it like crazy.
DO the same with about 1/4 cup of grated parmesan cheese topping ( the kind you get on the shelf, not the cooler at the store)
then do it again with 1-2 tablespoons of adobo spice (garlic powder and salt will do, if you don't have adobo
1. Garlic bread
2.apples
3.grapes
4.celery with (!) jelly(?) ( this is what he said, but I have never personally witnessed this!)
5.the " Secret Salad"- this consists of celery, carrots and dill pickles- on a tray.
My husband's favorite snacks:
1. Pepper Jack cheese and Triscuits.
2. Popcorn with salt and LOTS of cracked pepper
3.honeydew melon
4.Fruit salad
5.My great grandmother's potato salad- the best kind there ever was! Make this and I swear- it will disappear- everyone loves it!
Great Grandma Bates' Potato Salad
10 medium potatoes, boiled and diced
12 eggs, hard-boiled and chopped
4 stalks celery
1 medium onion, diced
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
2/3 cup moyonaise ( not sweet)
1/3 cup chopped hamberger dill slices
1/3 cup chopped dill spears
salt and pepper to taste
paprika ( optional) for garnish
1. combine ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Stir until well blended.
3. chill or serve at room temp ( someone is always eating it before it it hits the fridge!)
My favorite snacks:
1. cottage cheese and fruit
2.popcorn- with nothing or with anything- love popcorn.
3.baked apples
Nancy's Baked Apples
1 or more medium sized apples- of a tangy/semi-tart variety- I like Cortlands for this, but Jonathans and granny smiths work well too.
cinnamon
ground cloves
sweetener, such as sugar, brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup
butter
water
Preheat oven to 350
Cut the " lid" off of the apples, set aside. Using a melon baller, potato peeler or similar instrument, scoop out the cores. Place about 1 teaspoon of butter in the hole. Sprinkle cinnamon, cloves and sweetener ( to taste) into the hole. put about 1/2 to 1 inch of water into a 9x13 or 8x8 baking pan depending on how many you make. place the apples inside and the lids back on the apples. Cover with foil and bake for at least 20 minutes.....When the smell has spread throughout your home, they are close to done- check by taking the lid off of one apple and inserting a knife in the center. If it goes in easily, the apples are done.
Note- sometimes they fall apart if they cook too long- but I actually think they taste VERY good this way:)
Ok, first off- I need to say that I *in my flesh* detest schedules... I don't like being tied down..... there is never a schedule that has worked well for us enough that I have not changed it halfway and then decided to chuck it because some crazy disaster mucked it up. I begin and re-begin each year with high hopes, and then I begin again and again.....and end up cranky, with cranky kids. I may not stick to this routine... but so far, I think we like it:)
I avoided doing this particular theme because I can't quite figure it out yet.
But my kids DO like to have a schedule. God is a being of order, and not the author of confusion, so I really should try to be more like Him and figure something out that works- most of the time- and hopefully keep it.
I also noticed in God's order of things that He has made processes into seasons, and apart from the phases of the moon, and tides, most things to do not happen at EXACT times- the sun rises and sets at differing times each day, and so in nature, the animals adapt to a routine and not necessarily a schedule.
This year, unlike previous ones, my husband has attempted to get on a schedule for his work. Mind you, he only works part time, because of his health, and disability takes care of most of the rest of our needs.
I don't know about you, but I personally find it hard to do school with him around and stick to a schedule- sometimes even a routine is hard. My husband is home at infrequent intervals- sometimes has a weekday off, sometimes a weekend, rarely 2 days off in a row. Our church times( we go in the evenings) are always off though so that is a blessing.
So for the moment, his work is from 9am to 1-pm various days. This is a benefit to me because I am a VERY light sleeper- I cannot sleep if there is a light on in any room of the house or anyone is awake. I have to get up and out of bed before the kids do because I am VERY much NOT a morning person and I need some space and quiet in which to meditate and contemplate before I can focus on them. Therefore I NEED to get to bed early, which doesn't happen if my husband works after 9 pm- I try to sleep but wake up every few minutes- and I find that HORRIBLE.
Mornings are hard- noise grates on my nerves, and they all have ADHD, which means that they are forgetful and sometimes loud until their meds kick in. My youngest does not take medications only suppliments. I have to try to keep them separated to minimize fooling around or argung. We have a small house.
Anyway, this time around I have realized that because of my tendencies to be a bear in the a.m., and my children being on medication that must kick in before they are really ready to learn, and the fact that some days we neglect our read alouds for lack of interest.....
This is what I decided prayerfully to do:
We do not have Bible right away as I have found over the past 5 years that until they are ready to pay attention ( meds work) I am not helping them to love the Lord- they invariably argue, fool around, and otherwise end up getting punished or at the very least yelled at and I am not capturing their hearts this way, but helping them have reasons to dislike having Bible class and prayer. Following Deuteronomy 6:7-9, we will talk about God and his Word frequently throughout the day and night anyway.
Moving formal study to a place after the medication works and after they have had a bit of movement doing chores sets them up to listen, and to have good conversation about what they are learning, and spending much less time being corrected or rebuked. I can really see a difference.
730-9am- I get up, have some time with God, make coffee, maybe talk to my husband before he leaves for work. Someone takes the dog out. Sometimes I make a hot breakfast. Yesterday I threw together some home made cinnamon rolls and got a lot of affection from my husband who had that day off:)
8:30-9am- wake up the kids. Harley is usually awake first and I rarely have to wake him. Many times he is up before me but is quiet and doesn't bother me- although, with my light sleeping, he can be quiet and still wake me up just being awake. Trinity is the most difficult to wake. It's the Bi-polar, but she is getting better. I wake her just enough that she responds to me and tell her that I will be back in 10 minutes and she has to be sitting up or out of bed. Lately she is stumbling through the living room like a zombie before the 10 minutes are up- THAT is QUITE an accomplishment! Rowan usually wakes faster then her, but slower than Harley. It is a 50/50 chance that he will be a GRUMP. But he comes out of it quickly, and we seem to have the same kind of day whether he is happy and excited or ducks back under the blanket and announces that he doesn't want to have school ( he gets up anyway- it's just expressing his opinion, not defiance)
As soon as they get out of bed-
medications are given, and breakfast starts. I try to make sure we have it together. We sit in the living room, in our pajamas, and I start with the read alouds. I find that the eating keeps their hands busy, and keeps them quiet, while the stories engage them and keep them from squabbling and me from going insane. I switch after one person has finished eating, and they read a little so I can eat. This gets the day off to a good start- no pressure for me to try to MAKE THEM learn it- and none for them to try too hard to sit still and be quiet, because it is not an essential subject.
After the read aloud, we take a few minutes to get dressed, comb hair, brush teeth...
When that is done we clean up, make beds, clean off table , make sure clothes are where they belong. This is new. I have tried having them do it before breakfast, but it is too much a of a struggle. After school- some deal, and then they are tired.....this is still a struggle, but at least it is getting easier, and I am not busy trying to catch up on Bible, email or what not while they fight and argue in their room- the boys, that is, my daughter usually makes he bed fine. They are just learning. Again.
After things are in order- just this wee bit, we sit down for prayer and Bible.
After that is math- they all work seperately, and usually I can have a few minutes to recharge myself, since their curriculum is self- teaching.
Next, we have PE- it usually ends up being around noon. We are doing the 10 minute solution, which I enjoy and can commit to. It is a short 10 minute work out- there are many different choices, and it is effective. I always try to do exerecise when dh is out, because he tends to joke about it.
Following PE is language arts including handwriting, vocabulaty, spelling, and writing on varied days according to our curriculum.
Raymond is home between 1 and 1:30, and we eat lunch together.
After lunch, I plan for science and social studies and fine arts, since the medication is starting to wear off then and lunch tends to make the kids a bit sleepy. These are the favorite subjects and if I decide I am tired out and just tell them to read, they are perfectly happy to just learn it that way. They absorb those subjects readily, and often learn more than I would have asked them to.
At times, the science or social studies is a video, which we watch later in the day.
At some point, I will add back in music, but for now, this is the routine.
This year I plan to use the same curriculum that I discovered last year- AWOA.
I enjoy teaching unit studies, and this one seems like it was tailor made for us!
For this unit we are continuing on Greece, we are using History pockets with it
We are currently using Mammoth Math with all of the kids.
I think that this year, we will take Wednesdays and use them for playing educational games and getting outside more. I feel like we have spent most of our summer indoors and I miss it.
I think we need to focus more on handwriting.. we are just using Happy Scribe Currclick.
This will be Miss Trinity's last year before high school. (SCARRY!) I sense the leading to get her involved in an apprenticeship or volunteer work, probably at the Humane Society. She is interested in being a vet or some other kind of animal care worker.
We will continue to use Keyboard Capers for music class daily.
I want to get some kind of exercise going on here- don''t think we get enough. i have a homeschool family fitness book, but I don't like it-
ANY SUGGESTIONS OF WHAT WE COULD USE OR DO WOULD GREATLY HELP!
Rowan will be starting 2nd grade, Harley will be in 7th and Trinity is, of course in 8th.
As of right now, though, we are just focusing on some character issues and getting our home back to normal after remodeling....
The verse that is foremost in my mind at the start of this year is
Isa. 40:11 11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.
He takes care of our needs, in every way. He holds my young ( and not so young) ones in his arms, close to His heart. I need to let Him do that more in our school. I tend to focus on getting there, but God seems interested in using the time in the journey to bond closely with my children.
I need to focus more on gentleness this year, and it also helps my perfectionist nature to know that God is GENTLY leading me... that he is patient, and does not ask me to hurry up, or overwork myself. He also does not expect me to carry the children on my own.
It means more to me that He is leading me gently, in that I am going to get a soft nudge here and there to let me know where to proceed. I am by nature, a control freak. Learning to be submissive has been frustrating... I keep trying.... I miss the opportunity sometimes to step back and watch Him do what only He can do. I have trust issues... but I hear God saying " Do you trust ME?"
This year, I am finally seeing my husband rise up as a leader here, and a covering over our family. God is doing it, just through him. No, Raymond isn't perfect... but I am learning how to build him up and hold my tongue so that his greatness can shine forth. It's really God's greatness anyway!
It's amazing to see all of the things that the Lord has brought us through! He can do ANYTHING! He can save ANYONE! He can make a way in utter DISASTER! HE REIGNS!!!!
My Name is Nancy..
I never really liked my name so when I grew up and had kids I wanted all of them to have unusual names:) My name is Hebrew and means " full of grace"
Both my husband and I grew up attending private religious schools.....It was worse than the public school system, the whitewashed tomb effect.....
Before that I was with a cult (click here for details) although I did MEET my Savior there, and I did commit to Him there, I did not trust His work on the cross alone for my salvation- I was baptized there, and studied the Bible for the first time there, but I was not saved.
In 2000, I had a complicated pregnancy... I had to be hospitalized with Preeclampsia right around Christmas. After 2 weeks and lots of tests, we found out that our little girl had Down Syndrome.
Her name was Petra Elexis. She had a lot of other issues, some surgeries, and then at the age of 5 months she came home for the first time...and died suddenly a few months later.
That same year, my husband had heart surgery( look to my previous post "heart issues"
We eventually became homeless for a time when our youngest son was born, and ended up moving in with some relatives in another state. It was in MO, where I found my Salvation. I was reading a book by Joni Earekson Tada called Heaven, Your Real Home,
It was there that I found out that Salvation is free, a gift I cannot earn. There I was rebaptized as a believer, and checked out some other churches.
The decision to homeschool was not easy. I thought it made your kids WEIRD. My daughter asked me to homeschool her, and I told her I COULDN'T DO IT.
But over time, as I sought the Lord, I knew that something needed to change- my kids were not getting all they needed in public school. Far from it. I saw my dear Trinity loose heart for learning all together...
I was crying when I took her and Harley to school every day.... I had lost one child and almost a husband.
I wanted more time with them. God let me meet a homeschooling family, and He changed my mind.
That was 6 years ago Yes, my kids are weird, but then they would have been weird anyway, and who wants to be "normal" in this crazy world?
I have 4 children all together, Trinity is 14, Harley is 12 and Rowan is 7. Petra is with the Lord. I wasn't ever planning to be a stay at home mom who homeschools! Ever since I was little, I have wanted to be a scientist.... but it set me up very well for teaching homeschool! my personality is INTJ
I am still finding out what He has for me. My latest test of faith and obedience is that I am joining the worship team at my church. He's been after me for 3 years on this one- mostly because I wanted to be sure that I was doing it for HIM and not for any other reason. My first service will be on August 30th (we have Saturday night service). I have felt the Enemy come against me from everywhere this past month...
But The Lord is the God of this family, and I will not be defeated, because it's HIS battle.
Well, I'm a Mom, a Medical Assistant, a knitter, kite flyer, nature lover...Around here we have special needs, ( Asperger's, ADHD, Bi-polar) a few animal pals, some tattoos and a homeschool. It's our 6th year. This is my 16th year of marriage to a Mr. Visionary who happens to be a walking miracle.
Yes, my kids are weird, but then they would have been weird anyway, and who wants to be "normal" in this crazy world?
